


odontophobia

by aqakita



Category: RuPaul's Drag Race RPF
Genre: F/F, Fluff, tw anxiety, tw dentists, tw injection mention, tw phobias
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-15
Updated: 2018-05-15
Packaged: 2019-05-07 09:57:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14668632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aqakita/pseuds/aqakita
Summary: Farrah has to go to the dentist but is terrified of it. Alexis is there to help her through it.





	odontophobia

“Farrah, come on!”

She’d been shouted to get out of bed at least five times now, but she wasn’t having it. Burying her face into the soft sherpa pillow, pulling the blankets further up over her head, she tried to block out the noise coming from downstairs. This was stupid, and she knew it, but that didn’t mean she was relenting any. Farrah, in an hour, had a dentist appointment to get a cavity filled. Being terrified of the dentist, she was absolutely adamant that she wasn’t going. Yes, her face was in agony, and yes, she had agreed to Alexis booking the appointment for her, but that didn’t mean she was going.

The sound of footsteps toward the door made her bristle, and as the loose handle rattled, she shuffled back under the sheets, as if she wouldn’t be noticed. A sigh left the older woman as she paced toward the bedside, crouching down, and tugging the covers back enough that she could see Farrah’s pouting face.  
“I don’t wanna go,” She whimpered.  
“I know, baby,” Reaching a hand forward, she brushed her fingers over her cheek, “but if you don’t go, it’ll just get worse.”  
“That’s fine.”  
“You won’t be saying that when you have an abscess.”

Shuffling out from beneath the covers, the frowning girl looked pitifully toward Alexis as she sat up. Patting the bed beside her, she let her sit down, before tightly latching onto her, head buried into her shoulder. With an arm around her waist, the redhead heaved another sigh, reassuringly rubbing up and down. This appointment was something they’d fought over for a few days now, and she knew that it was fear that put Farrah off. She also knew that she needed it sorted before it got worse, and the threat of leaving it leading to an extraction was enough to convince her.

Farrah was crying now, and between her sniffles, she asked, “Will you come in with me?”  
“If that’s what it takes to get you in there, then yes, I will.” Pressing a kiss to her head, she followed, “But you need to promise me that you’ll try to be brave.”  
“I can’t promise that…” Looking up, she giggled a bit, though the upset was still plain on her face, “I’ll try not to run out of the room.”  
“That’s good enough. Now come on, get ready. You want anything to eat before you go?”  
Moving off the bed, she headed toward the closet, “No thank you.”  
“You can’t eat when you get home.”  
“Why not?”  
“The anaesthetic, you might bite your tongue.”  
A loud whine left her, “Fine, I guess I’ll have some toast.”

While she was getting ready, Alexis headed back downstairs, putting the toaster on and getting herself a drink. This wasn’t going to be a fun day, and she felt guilty for making Farrah go, even though it was necessary. The worst part was seeing her cry, despite that being a semi-regular reaction from her at anything distressing. She felt oddly protective over her, in a way that was almost maternal. Maybe that was just the natural response when presented with someone who acted like a child, but it was something she was becoming more and more aware of.

Farrah came into the kitchen, whining, dragging her feet, with a frown still on her face. She slumped down onto one of the chairs at the dining table, chin propped up on her hands as she waited for some sort of response to her entry. A plate was put down in front of her, and she was given a glass of water.  
“Why can’t I have a coffee?” She mewled, pushing the glass away.  
“You just brushed your teeth, it’d taste disgusting.”  
“I still want some.”

Her now upturned head revealed a smudge by her lip where some toothpaste was left. Holding lightly onto her jaw to keep her still, Alexis gently wiped it away with her thumb, gaining a displeased grumble in response, but no real struggle. When she went to let go, however, she felt one of Farrah’s hands reach up to her wrist, holding it loosely. Rubbing her finger up and down her cheek, Alexis mumbled, “I know you’re scared, but you need to eat before we go, so I’m gonna let go of your face now, and you’re gonna eat your toast.”  
Nodding, Farrah released the wrist, and the taller woman let go, sitting down opposite her.

The pink haired girl ate in a surprising silence, not really sure what to say. The only things on her mind were that she didn’t want to go to the appointment, and that the half-and-half bread tasted disgusting. After one slice, she pushed the plate away, leaving the other slice and the uneaten crusts. They’d be put out for the birds in the garden anyway, so it wasn’t a massive waste. She reluctantly drank the water, though after every sip, she made a point of pulling a face about it. Once the theatrics were over, she went to re-brush her teeth, having realised that eating after cleaning them wasn’t her brightest idea.

Making sure she had everything they might need while they were out - most importantly, her wallet - Alexis waited at the bottom of the stairs. Since she was the one that made her book the appointment, she thought it was probably fair that paid for it too. Besides, given her history with going to the dentist, poor Farrah might have been too shaken up to sort out payment herself. Even though it was quite a cost (she found that any dental work was exorbitant), Alexis didn’t mind spending on her. This was something she actually needed, after all.

A shuffling on the landing turned her attention, and it seemed like the girl had gone completely against the idea of going again. Her blue eyes were misted over, and slightly hidden behind the wall, her body was rigid. Getting up from her seat on the second step, Alexis made her way up the stairs, resting a hand on the frightened woman’s arm when she reached her.  
“I’m not going.” Her voice was wavering, and one of her hands was pressed against where her mouth ached.  
“I promise you, it’ll be fine. I’ll be in there the whole time, and they’re a place who are good at dealing with nervous patients.” She’d searched one out specifically.  
“I don’t… I can’t go.” Moving closer, she clung onto her, burying her face in her chest, “Please don’t make me.”

Holding her close, Alexis almost broke. The frailty that Farrah showed was hurting her to such an extent that she was feeling tears in her own eyes. But giving in would get them nowhere - the toothache would just get worse, and the longer it was put off, the more nervous she would get about it. Rocking her back and forth slightly, she focused more on getting her calm. When she could feel her stilling, she asked quietly, “Do you want to come sit in the car?”

As soon as she asked, the smaller woman bristled again, shaking her head.  
“We don’t have to go there yet anyway, there’s a good 45 minutes until the appointment, and it’s a 10 minute drive. But if you sit in the car, you can calm down in there. We can even go somewhere else first.”  
“Instead.”  
“No, not instead, first.” Alexis sighed, rubbing up and down her back, “We can go somewhere nice after the appointment too, if you want.”  
“Can we go out to the paddocks?”  
“If that’s what you want, then yes.”

That seemed promising. Farrah backed away from the hug a little, though she dropped a hand down from the woman’s back to instead grip onto one of her hands. She nodded nervously at the gesture to the stairs, and started her way down them. Every single ounce of her body was screaming at her to turn back and not go, but even she knew that if she didn’t go, she would only feel worse. Hesitating on the door, she squeezed Alexis’ hand tightly, glancing up at her for support. After a returning squeeze and a kiss on the head, she stumbled nervously outside.

In the car, she mumbled a clearly forced, “We can go straight to the dentist.”  
“Are you sure?” Alexis sounded surprised, glimpsing over at her as she started the car. After receiving a nod in response, she noticed something, and curtly scolded, “Put your seatbelt on.”  
“Fine…” She buckled in, leaning forward to put some music on and feigning choking on the belt over her neck. The redhead rolled her eyes, before focusing on backing out of the driveway, starting the journey. Absorbed again in her anxieties, Farrah stayed quiet on the way there, thumbing the soft fabric of her jumper and watching out the window.

Having to sit in the waiting room for a while didn’t make things feel much better. It was fortunate that they were the only clients waiting, as about five minutes in, Farrah was whimpering again, hiding her face in Alexis’ shirt. Fortunately, when they were called through, she was all cried out, and all cleaned up by some tissues the woman had in her bag. Her situation was explained to the rather friendly dentist, who assured them that he was used to dealing with clients like her, and worse.

Things were going surprisingly well at first. The pink haired girl let him look in her mouth, let him blow air on the tooth even though it hurt, and didn’t fight against having it scraped to see how bad the decay was. All of that was surprisingly fine. It was the moment that she was informed she would need a small injection that she panicked again, straight up refusing. Injections weren’t favourable in general, let alone in the mouth. The dentist assured her that it would only hurt a little bit, and then it would feel fine. She was having none of it.

Giving her a moment to calm down, letting her sit up in the chair, the dentist readied the injection. He did it out of eyeshot, not wanting to work her up any more than she was. While he did it, he encouraged Alexis over to calm her. Standing at the side of the chair, she offered a hand to the trembling Farrah, rubbing the back of her’s in soothing circles.  
“I don’t want this.”  
“I know, sweetie,” She squeezed her hand a little, “I promise it’ll be fine. I’ve had it done before, and I was fine.”  
“Does it hurt?”  
“It stings a little, but it’s not that bad.”  
“You promise?”  
“I promise.” She raised the hand to kiss the back of her knuckles, eliciting a smile.

After that point, she just stayed stood by her side, holding her hand tightly. It was slightly awkward positioning, given that a dental nurse was working beside her, but because it was working to keep the girl soothed, she was given permission to stay put. Though Farrah whimpered and choked up a little at the injection, once that was done, she got through the rest of the appointment quite well. She was even surprised when it was done, and it wasn’t as bad as she thought.

When they were back in the car, Farrah looked immensely pleased with herself. Admittedly, there was definitely a look of pride in Alexis eyes, even as she had to remind her again to put the seatbelt on.  
“Thank you for staying with me.” She spoke with a slight lisp, half of her mouth completely dead.  
“It’s fine, I’m proud of you for getting through that. I told you it wouldn’t be that bad.”  
“You know I hate saying it, but you were right. Now, horses.” She pointed out the windscreen, grinning.  
“Of course, darling.”


End file.
